Caregiving During COVID and Beyond: The Experience of Workplace Stress and Chaplain Care Among Healthcare Workers.

This article examines the experiences of patient-facing healthcare workers (HCWs) in acute care hospital settings regarding workplace stressors, particularly moral distress, and the role of hospital-based chaplains in addressing their emotional well-being. Moral distress arises when HCWs recognize the ethically appropriate action but are hindered by institutional obstacles, a phenomenon intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through qualitative interviews with 33 HCWs, the study found that chaplain care—widely available in American hospitals—serves as an accessible resource that HCWs use both proactively and reactively to cope with moral distress, providing emotional, spiritual, and practical support. The findings suggest that facilitating chaplain–HCW interactions may help mitigate moral distress and improve well-being, highlighting an urgent need for evidence-based strategies to address moral distress and prevent moral injury, burnout, and turnover among healthcare staff.